World Formula One champion Michael Schumacher yesterday delivered a chilling message to the young brigade snapping at his heels in pursuit of his world title: "You want a fight? You've got one."

Schu fit for new dogfight

World Formula One champion Michael Schumacher yesterday delivered a chilling message to the young brigade snapping at his heels in pursuit of his world title: "You want a fight? You've got one."

The 35-year-old German said he was fighting fit, fully motivated and determined to continue a decade of dominance at the summit of global motorsport.

"I have no anxiety. I am thrilled to get behind the wheel. It is pure pleasure, and I am confident," he said on the eve of his 13th full season of Grand Prix racing.

Scoffing at the doubters who have said that Schumacher should quit while he is on top, the Ferrari superstar said his team was primed and ready to take the fight to allcomers and continue to win.

And he is certain that in his 2004-model race car, he has the weapon he needs to pursue an astonishing seventh title, and fifth in a row.

The scarlet cars were very impressive in late pre-season testing at Imola, and although the temperatures there (about three degrees) were very different to what Ferrari will meet in Australia, Schumacher is quick to point out that it will be the same for everyone else.

"We did good test sessions all winter. We were running very competitively and reliably; that's the impressive thing. You can't stress that enough," he said.

For the first time in several seasons, Ferrari has come to Melbourne with a new car. In the past, it has been content to rely on an upgraded "evolution" of the car that finished the previous campaign.

The champion is comfortable with the new strategy. "It (the car) is an improvement. To achieve what we have done straight out of the box is tremendous. None of us (himself, team-mate Rubens Barrichello or test driver Luca Badoer) have stepped into the old car and back into the new one (for a comparison). We know it's better -- how much, enough, we don't know."

Reliability will be a major issue this season, with teams allowed only one engine a weekend instead of running three or four powerplants during a meeting.

It is a cost-cutting measure designed to help smaller teams close the gap on larger operations, but Schumacher believes the differentials between the big squads and the rest will remain.

"I would expect that the big teams have done a lot of kilometres and have prepared for it. I think the equilibrium will be where it is now."

Not everyone is convinced that the man who smashed Juan Manuel Fangio's record of five world titles when he secured his sixth crown last season will continue to reign.

His brother, Williams star Ralf Schumacher, believes Michael's title challenge will falter. The man who runs world motorsport, Max Mosley, also thinks the six-time world champion will struggle to stay at the top. And Bernie Ecclestone, veteran ringmaster of Formula One, reckons that this season Kimi Raikkonen could displace the legendary German at the top of the F1 tree.

Schumacher hears the comments, sees the stories, and puts it all to one side. He acknowledges that there is a growing list of challengers, but that only whets his competitive juices.

Winter testing, he said, showed there would be "tight competition. (There were) very good lap times, very good speed from all the competitors. But I think Ferrari is there, too".

The champion believes the main challenge will come from the BMW-Williams pairing of Schumacher jnr and Juan Pablo Montoya, and Raikkonen backed by David Coulthard in the McLarens.

His team-mate, Barrichello, is another who could take him all the way to the wire. "Yes, I do (expect him to be a strong contender for the title)," Schumacher said. "He has improved his game over the years. He has got stronger and stronger; I just hope he stops now."